Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 18

Devanagari script

नितांतकमलाकांत नामधेयसुधारसम् । रसयंती न रसना तस्यान्यरसस्पृहा

Transliteration

nitāṃtakamalākāṃta nāmadheyasudhārasam | rasayaṃtī na rasanā tasyānyarasaspṛhā

Translation

その舌は、カマラー・カーンタの御名という甘露の精髄を限りなく味わい、もはや他の味を求めなかった。

Word by Word

• नितान्त-कमला-कान्त: O beloved of Kamalā (Lakṣmī), supremely
• नितान्त-कमला-कान्त: Sambodhana/Alambana (Addressed/आलम्बन)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नितान्त (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक-रूप) + कमला (प्रातिपदिक) + कान्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (कमलायाः कान्तः) + उपपद-विशेषण (नितान्त)

• नामधेय-सुधा-रसम्: the nectar-essence of (His) name
• नामधेय-सुधा-रसम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नामधेय (प्रातिपदिक) + सुधा (प्रातिपदिक) + रस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष-श्रृंखला (नामधेयस्य सुधायाः रसः)

• रसयन्ती: tasting/relishing
• रसयन्ती: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: रसय् (धातु)
• Form: शानच्-प्रत्यय (Present active participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• न: not
• न: Nishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• रसना: the tongue
• रसना: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रसना (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तस्य: of him/that
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अन्य-रस-स्पृहा: desire for other tastes
• अन्य-रस-स्पृहा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक) + रस (प्रातिपदिक) + स्पृहा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (अन्येषां रसाणां स्पृहा)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Close focus on the devotee’s lips and rosary as he repeats the Name; a subtle stream of nectar-like light flows from the syllables, while worldly delicacies fade into shadow.

Characters & Entities

• Kamalākānta (Viṣṇu/Lakṣmīpati)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The divine Name is a higher ‘rasa’ that dissolves attachment to lesser pleasures.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Kāśīkhaṇḍa framework glorifies Kāśī as the spiritual field where such devotion ripens, though no particular tīrtha is named in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicit practice: nāma-japa/constant remembrance and tasting the sweetness of the Lord’s Name.